Buzzd, a location-based city guide and social network that launched in the Blackberry App World in May, is now optimized for Canadian Crackberry addicts and Blackberry Storm smartphone users.
The company, one of the first to receive an investment from the Blackberry Partners Fund, says its updated application now interacts fully with the Storm’s touchscreen. This is extremely important in light of the fact that 40 percent of Buzzd downloads from the App World are by Storm users.
Moving into the Canadian market is a smart move as well. As a Canadian citizen I can tell you from first-hand experience that it’s disappointing that the majority of popular LBS mobile social networks haven’t been optimized for Canada. By being one of the first popular LBS social networks to move into the Canadian market, Buzzd is primed to take advantage of the unmet demand here (hint, hint to the rest of you!).
Since its Blackberry launch in May, Buzzd has seen a 220 percent increase in user-generated reviews or “buzzes” of events and venues such as restaurants and bars. Its mobile web site traffic has increased 125 percent as a result of visits directed from the Blackberry app. I’m sure this growth will increase exponentially with Canadian compatibility.
I’ve covered Buzzd here before, but if you’re not familiar with it, the application enables you to set up a profile, find events and cool venues near you, and submit “buzzes” or reviews of those events and places. You can also access Buzzd online and hook it up to your Twitter and Facebook accounts. The app pulls in information from a number of partners including TimeOut, Zagat, Citysearch, Flavorpill, Metromix, Upcoming and others.
In addition to Blackberry smartphones, Buzzd is also available on the iPhone and Nokia smartphones.
I’m going to give Buzzd a try here in Winnipeg, Canada today and I’ll let you know what I think later.
